Lausanne Consultation on Jewish Evangelism – North America

Tom Cantor

In 1908, Tom’s grandfather, Orthodox Rabbi Louis Cantor, founded Brith Akim—the first synagogue in Petersburg, Virginia. In 1950, Tom was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to Jewish parents, and 20 years later, he came to faith in the Messiah. In his garage in 1976, Tom began Scantibodies Laboratory, Inc. three years after graduating from UC San Diego as a biochemist.

Today, Scantibodies (which develops and manufactures diagnostic medical tests and their critical components for a variety of medical conditions) has 650 employees and 1,500 different products—including First Response Pregnancy test. According to Taxpayers Against Fraud, this growth can be attributed to “excellent work that is fairly priced.”

But there is more to Tom’s success than just good business practices. Tom unashamedly integrates his faith into every part of his organization. The Light and Life Foundation, a 501c3 ministry created by Tom and his wife, owns the Creation and Earth History Museum in Santee, California adjacent to his laboratory, and oversees multiple other outreach ministries—including Israel Restoration Ministries. His biochemical facility in Tecate, Mexico is built to the biblical dimensions of Noah’s ark. Inside the facility, employees and the Tecate community can send their children to a Bible-centered school that offers healthy meals and promotes the Gospel by word and deed. The facility’s 1,500-seat auditorium serves as the meeting place for the Tecate Tabernacle.

In 2004, when Tom discovered faulty test kits were being produced by the largest diagnostic testing company in the country, he brought it to their attention. They ignored him. Tom persisted. The faulty kits caused unnecessary medical procedures, increased patient suffering, and resulted in unwarranted billings to the government. After an intense five-year battle, Quest Diagnostics and its subsidiary were ordered to pay the government $302 million. As the whistleblower, Tom was awarded approximately $45 million, and was named 2009 “Whistleblower of the Year” by Taxpayers Against Fraud. He has used his award to research and develop numerous new healthcare therapies.